• Annabelle Floral Palm Dress [Bright & Beautiful]

    Something a little different from me today. I don’t usually veer too much from my love of the 50s but occasionally something will come along from the Bright & Beautiful range which I just love and need to have! That’s the case for this gorgeous Annabelle Palm Dress which oozes much more of a late 60s/early 70s vibe. I actually had a very similar wallpaper in my bedroom growing up as a little kid so it’s really nostalgic for me.

    It’s still a shirt style dress, which I often wear, but instead of either having a voluminous skirt over the knee or a tailored pencil shape, it’s loose and not at all fitted.

    Feelin’ that 60s vibe

    It also features a super cool, pointed collar which match the cuffs on the full length loose sleeves. None of which is too hot to wear as it’s made from a really light fabric that’s perfect for Summer. The bespoke print is great with the large florals and palm frongs all over in greens, white and a dash of blue.

    I love how light it is to wear and that the breeze caught the bottom of the skirt a little to give me a little ‘flip’ when I walked

    As well as wearing it as intended, I also couldn’t resist cinching my waist in a little and added a white belt from another outfit to change it up a bit and give myself more options. I really like it with the belt too and feel like it works well.

    Overall I preferred the option with the collar buttoned up and the belt added and felt the look was still retro, though I’d style my hair in more of a straight bouffant next time and change the glasses to something a little larger to emulate that groovy vibe.

    Fit wise, it’s a loose fit and I have it in my normal size which fitted great. If there was a size down (unfortunately sizes don’t go down enough for me) I’d have also tried the size down too but I feel it’s pretty true to size. The length is above my knee which is amazing for me! These dresses are meant to be on the shorter side which was part of the trend at the time.

    The Annabelle Floral Palm Dress is available on the Collectif website in most sizes (all except 8 and 18) for £55.00 and sizes 8-16 over at SilkFred with free delivery.

     

    For reference: 
    I’m 4’11” with 4 inch heels on in the pic and a standard size 6 in Collectif and Bright & Beautiful clothing. I’m wearing a size 6 in the photos above.

    Also wearing:
    Shoes: Lulu Hun Lorena previous season
    Hair Flowers: Collectif Aaliyah and High Steet many moons ago
    Earrings and Sunnies: Collectif previous season

  • Christine Pencil Dress Review (Collectif Clothing)

    I thought it was time for a little pencil dress feature, and oh my, is this one a beauty! In a gorgeously soft, mustard, fabric and three quarter length sleeves, the Christine is a perfect winter addition to everyone’s wardrobe.

    To the front, there’s a wonderfully sweet peter pan collar with a fixed, black velvet, bow detail. The velvet is continued with four feature buttons across the chest and at the waist on the adjustable belt (which has eyelets – woohoo!). 

    The sweetest velvet details

    This classy piece has a centre back zip and a split to the rear (so you can wiggle but still walk). It falls at a perfect vintage mid calf length on me with my heels. There is a little stretch in the material but I find it true to size. If you’re busty or wider on the waist or hips than the Collectif chart, you should size up.

    I really like this dress which you could easily wear for work or play depending on accessories. I’ve kept mine simple and paired it with some black Lulu Hun heels. There’s also a swing version of this dress available if you’re not really a pencil kinda gal, which can be found here.  Both versions are currently available in all sizes and I do hope more colour ways come out in future collections as it feels lovely to wear – fingers crossed!

     

     

    For reference:
    Height: 4’11” wearing 4 inch heels
    Stats: 33:24:33 and a standard Collectif size 6 (which I’m wearing here)